India witnessed a Bharat Bandh led by Dalit organisations protesting the dilution of the SC/ST Act, 1989.

On March 20, 2018, a ruling by the Supreme Court of India on the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which required a preliminary inquiry before arrest and allowed anticipatory bail in such cases.

On 2nd April 2018, a nationwide Bharat Bandh was called by SC/ST organisations, bringing large parts of India to a standstill.

The bandh is widely regarded as one of the largest caste-based protests in recent Indian history.

Mass protests spread across several states, turning violent with clashes, causing 11–14 deaths and hundreds of injuries, as authorities imposed curfews and deployed forces to restore order.

Parliament later passed the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2018, restoring the original strict provisions of the law.

On February 10, 2020, the Supreme Court of India upheld the constitutional validity of the amendment.
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